A federal judge denied Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s request for phone calls and visits with his family, CBS News reported.
The judge asserted that the Bureau of Prisons retains complete authority over the imprisoned drug lord‘s conditions according to CBS News. The decision stemmed from the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York on April 10, emphasizing that any privileges Guzman enjoyed during his trial no longer apply following his conviction. “This Court has no power to alter the conditions that the Bureau of Prisons has imposed,” the judge indicated in the motion.
Guzman, infamous as the former leader of the world’s most feared cartel, sought judicial intervention in a letter dated March 20, lamenting his isolation and the cessation of contact with his daughters for the past seven months. He expressed his distress over being cut off from his family, attributing the decision to his lawyers and questioning the lack of communication about future calls with his daughters, the outlet stated.
No phone time for lonely El Chapo: Judge denies drug kingpin’s request to speak to his daughters or have visits with beauty queen wife https://t.co/WK41qGoPAe pic.twitter.com/DFSLn75KqF
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) April 17, 2024
The kingpin also requested that his wife, Emma Coronel Aispuro, be allowed to visit. Aispuro, who has served a sentence for her involvement in Guzman’s criminal enterprises, is a dual U.S.-Mexico citizen and former beauty queen. Guzman proposed that visits be arranged during his daughters’ school breaks, as they are currently enrolled in schools in Mexico, according to the outlet. (RELATED: FACT CHECK: Does This Video Show A Gunfight In Mexico In Relation To The Arrest of Ovidio Guzman Lopez?)
Since his 2019 conviction for multiple charges, including drug trafficking and money laundering, Guzman has made several pleas for relief from the conditions of his confinement, citing severe psychological distress, CBS News reported.